Grand Bahama Island’s reputation as a diver’s paradise has been growing ever since the earliest episodes of Sea Hunt were filmed here in the late 1950s.
When you dive deep into the crystal clear waters of Grand Bahama, you’ll find detailed coral gardens, playful dolphins and inviting blue spaces. There is so much to discover beyond the beach! Oddly enough, many people barely enter this magical world. Instead, they seem to prefer other land-based adventures like relaxing in a chair by the pool and catching some rays. Trust us—if you go out on a dive boat, you’ll be completely captivated by everything you see in this amazing underwater world.
To book your diving adventure, contact the following vendors:
Grand Bahama Island is one of the few places you are guaranteed to dive with dolphins in the wild. This is done through the Underwater Explorers’ Society’s (UNEXSO) “Dolphin Dive” program, where local dolphins from the Dolphin Experience frolic with divers at a reef about a mile offshore. Many people can only imagine getting this close to a dolphin in the wild. Don’t miss out on this rare and amazing experience––swim with them right here on Grand Bahama Island.
Dive with sharks
If you want to dive with sharks, there are two feeding programs you can participate in on Grand Bahama Island; one with UNEXSO and another with West End Watersports. In both programs, an experienced shark feeder wearing chain mail offers fish to a swirling group of Caribbean reef sharks. Anyone who’s done this dive will tell you that it makes for an incredible photo opportunity.!
The adventure will typically begin with a detailed...show more briefing at the dock. The shark feeder will run through the various phases of the dive, then you will travel to the dive site together via boat. Once in the water, you will soon be amazed at the sights around you. You will often see 10-25 sharks, varying in length from 4 to 9 feet, many of which will come quite close to the group. Definitely, an experience to remember!
With a diverse daily activities program, marvelous beaches, sports, and fun, your vacation is bound to become unforgettable. Enjoy being part of the many activities under the warm tropical sun, accompanied by people who every day put on their best smile. Breathtaking views and a lively entertainment-fun atmosphere make this an ideal setting to enjoy of your favorite pastimes with the opportunity to create new memories.
Shark and Dolphin Encounters are just the beginning!
West End Watersports located at Old Bahama Bay, West End, Grand Bahama Island offers fun and exciting adventures. Tiger Beach Shark diving! Lobster and Conch diving, reef fishing, stingray feeds and more!
Excursions for both SCUBA certified guests, which is a “face to face” trip with our little friends and also, a “caged” trip for the non-certified and more conservative guests!
The trip includes boat, fuel, licensed captain and professionally trained...show more shark feeder, tanks, weights, belts, lunch and refreshments, and chum bait. The duration is from 8AM to 4PM.
Please email or call 1(386) 589-9893 for availability and prices for the Cage Diving Experience. Private Charters Available!
If you’re an avid diver, you’ll benefit from knowing what some of the most unique and best dive sites are in the areas surrounding Grand Bahama Island.
Deep Dive Sites
High profile corals in tongue and groove formations lie in 60 – 100+ feet of water. Sharks, turtles and large pelagic creatures are most likely to be seen in these depths.
Medium Dive Sites
These dive locations are found in 40 – 60 feet of water. Typically, there are scattered coral heads growing into more solid reef formations along a sandy bottom.
Shallow Dive Sites
Shallow sites are generally 10 – 15 feet deep. Perfect for snorkeling, beginning divers, fish watching and picture taking. These reefs offer the most colour, fish and coral because of their shallow depths.
Sunk for UNEXSO in 1982; Theo’s was a 228-foot cement hauler. She lies on her port side at 100 feet, adjacent to the continental shelf. The dive includes two penetrations – the engine room and the cargo hold. A giant green moray plus a few spotted eels sometimes reside in the wreck.
Jose’s Wreck
Balanced between two separate coral heads, this 40-foot tugboat allows divers to swim under the hull. Lobsters and crabs can occasionally be seen hiding in the crevices between the wreck and the reef. In the winter, congregations of tiger groupers are in the vicinity.
Edge of the Ledge
The mooring is set at 100 feet on a sandy bottom. To the south, you will see the slope of the continental shelf that drops off dramatically. Following the ledge, you will see small scattered coral heads. Keep an eye out for hammerhead sharks, eagle and manta rays that may be cruising by the ledge.
Gale’s Grotto
At the mooring, you will find solid coral with surge channels that gradually slope off to a depth of 80-90 feet. This site is close to the shark feeding area, so it is possible to see a shark or two swimming by.
Littlehale’s Lair
Named for the National Geographic photographer, Bates Littlehale, this site has two lairs (small caves) created by the coral growing over the surge channels. It is possible to swim through the most westerly of these two lairs. This area is loaded with white, French and blue striped grunts.
SPID is an acronym for the Self-contained, Portable, Inflatable Dwelling that was once used for short term habitation experiments in the mid-to-late ‘70s. A twin engine Aztec aircraft, once used in the “Sea Hunt” series, is nestled on the sandy bottom. Large schools of blue parrot fish are often seen grazing on the bottom. As you head south, the coral will become solid with surge channels running through it. This site is very close to the location of the shark dive, so you may see one or two Caribbean reef sharks passing through.
Arrow Point
The coral heads at this site form a rough triangle, hence the name. You can see a bit of everything here; sandy bottom at the blue hole; scattered coral heads to the east and more solid reef to the west and southwest. A blue hole, eel garden and stingrays are some of the highlights.
Picasso’s Gallery
Here you find a pretty string of coral heads on a sandy plateau that should be visited as pieces of dfsdsfart in a gallery. On one isolated head, there are star corals of three different colours. Take your time to examine the individual coral heads as you can often find arrow crabs or red banded coral shrimp in their nooks and crannies. Further south, the scattered coral heads become a more solid fringing reef.
Ben’s Blue Hole
At this site there is a horseshoe-shaped ledge with several coral heads growing on the lip. This ledge is a blue hole and part of a large fracture that runs east from the mooring line. By following the fracture over two coral heads, you will find another small blue hole behind the second coral head. Very often you will find jacks, schoolmasters, dogsnappers, porkfish and schools of Creole wrasse by these holes.
Etheridge Wreck
Once a car ferry operating in the Carolinas, this vessel was featured in the movie “Halloween”. Sunk in early 1992 in an area of scattered coral heads, schools of silversides, shad, schoolmaster snappers and grouper make their home in and under the wreck.
This site received its name in the mid-sixties when four young men stumbled on an old Spanish wreck that contained several thousand silver coins. The coins recovered from this area have been estimated to be worth about three million dollars. Today, schools of blue, striped, black and French grunts are prevalent. Wide, white sandy surge channels have formed between the overhangs of Elkhorn, brain and star corals.
Pillar Castle
Named for its large stands of pillar coral, one on a finger of reef just north of the main reef area, another directly across from the mooring. The south end is hollow, forming a cavern that is usually filled with fish in the late summer – silversides, sometimes glass eyed sweepers or hatchet fish. Occasionally, it can be the lair of a large green moray eel.
Rainbow Reef
North of the mooring, there is a broken bottom with two stands of pillar coral. Hovering over this area are schools of yellowtail goatfish, grunts and sergeant majors. There is mountainous star coral surrounded by a stand of Elkhorn coral. Schools of silversides occupy the cave formed under the coral.
Sea Hunt
Portions of the television series “Sea Hunt” were filmed here. West of the mooring, there is a large isolated start coral that hosts sea fans and other soft corals. Blue headed wrasse, blue and grey cromus, and sergeant majors swim above the coral head. You may see a dark male sergeant major guarding a patch of purple eggs. The eggs are either attached under the overhand or on the hard bottom below.
Blackbeard’s Springs
This is a very pretty site on the eastern end of a large stretch of coral. At the mooring, there is a blue hole that is about one foot in diameter. This hole will either be blowing or sucking depending on tidal movement. At the eastern end of the reef, you can normally find large school of grunts, snappers or perhaps some Bermuda chub.
